Thinking outside the cereal bowl

Oct. 2, 2012

David Scrivner / Iowa City Press-Citizen / David Scrivner / Iowa City Press-Citizen

Written by

Michael Knock

Cooking class

Oreo Rice Krispie Treats

I generally ignored the “cookies and cream” recipes that were so popular a decade ago. I just never got the excitement. This one from the blog amorouschick is an exception, however. The Oreos pair wonderfully with the usual marshmallow and Rice Krispies combo. Throw in melted white chocolate, and you have something that is truly different. And tasty. They also are beautiful. I know that it is early to think about winter, but the snowy white look of these bars makes me think they would be perfect as a wintertime snack.

Oreo Rice Krispie Treats

¼ cup butter10 ounces mini marshmallows6 cups Rice Krispies cereal10 Oreos, chopped into bits (I used 7 Double-Stuff Oreos)1 1/3cups white chocolate chips6 Oreos, chopped into bits (I used 4 Double-Stuff)Grease a 9-by-13-inch pan. Set aside. Melt the butter in a large pan (one that can eventually hold the 6 cups of Rice Krispies) over a medium-low heat. Add the mini-marshmallows and stir continuously until melted and smooth. Remove the pan from the heat. Next, stir in the Rice Krispies making sure everything is thoroughly coated in the marshmallow goo. Add the 10 Oreos (chopped as directed) and stir. Spread the Rice Krispies evenly in the prepared pan. Melt the white chocolate chips in either a double-boiler or in the microwave until smooth. Spread it evenly over the top of the Rice Krispies. Sprinkle with the 6 Oreos (again, chopped as directed). Press the Oreos into the white chocolate to make sure they stick. Slice into bars and serve.

Regular readers probably know that smittenkitchen.com is one of my favorite cooking websites. Here is evidence of why. The recipe is unpretentious, yet offers a slight twist on an old favorite. Really, other than the sea salt (I used Kosher salt because it was what I had on hand), this recipe is a carbon copy of traditional Rice Krispie bars. It’s what you do with those ingredients that makes a difference. Instead of simply melting the butter, you let it begin to brown. That gives it a slightly nutty taste that is nicely complemented by the salt. Just don’t let the butter burn. That would give these bars a taste you might not enjoy so much. 4 ounces (1 stick) butter10 ounces marshmallowsHeaping ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt6 cups Rice KrispiesButter or grease an 8-by-8-inch pan. Set aside (Note: I used a 9-by-13-inch pan, and it was fine. You just get thinner bars). Melt the butter over medium-low heat in a pot large enough to handle 6 cups of Rice Krispies. The butter will first melt, and then foam and then begin to turn brown. Watch the butter closely because it will go from brown to burned in a few minutes. What you want is to stop the cooking when the butter is browned and smells nutty. Remove it from the heat and add the marshmallows. The butter should be warm enough to melt the marshmallows, but if not, return the pan to medium-low heat and stir until marshmallows are melted and incorporated into the butter. Next, add the salt and stir. Add the Rice Krispies and stir to coat thoroughly. Press this mixture into the prepared pan. Slice and eat.

Whenever I think of these bars, I think of standing in my Aunt Wilma’s kitchen with my little plastic Trick-or-Treat pumpkin in hand. Wilma knew I loved them, and she made them especially for me. Even when I was an adult, she continued the tradition by wrapping up boxes of these bars for me at Christmas or for my birthday. It always was a wonderful surprise. They really are the perfect treat. There are just four ingredients, so you can whip them up in a few minutes time. 1 cup chocolate chips1 cup butterscotch chips¼ cup crunchy peanut butter4 cups Rice Krispies cerealButter an 8-by-8-inch pan. Set aside. In a double-boiler over simmering water, melt the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips. Add the peanut butter and continue to stir until thoroughly combined. Be careful not to let the chocolate scorch. Pour the 4 cups of Rice Krispies into a large mixing bowl. Add the chocolate-peanut butter mixture and stir until cereal is completely coated. Press into the prepared pan. Put in a cool place until set. Cut into bars.

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Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?

Are Rice Krispies a breakfast cereal or are they a baking ingredient?

These are the questions that have troubled humanity since the dawn of civilization, or at least since 1928 when Rice Krispies were introduced. To be honest, I don’t care much about the chicken or the egg. I never weigh in on family disputes, especially ones between moms and kids. As for the tree in the forest, I am far more concerned about why it fell in the first place. Was it the emerald ash borer? Dutch elm disease?

The last question troubles me the most. For the first 18 years of my life, Rice Krispies primarily were used as a breakfast cereal. Snap, Crackle and Pop are three of the most famous product mascots in the business, and when I was growing up, I regularly the imitated kids in TV commercials by putting my ear to the bowl to hear the little bits of puffed rice “talk.” Yes, I was an easy mark for media manipulation.

But even then Rice Krispies had something of an identity crisis. One of my all-time favorite snacks was my Aunt Wilma’s chocolate Rice Krispie bars. She made them every Halloween, so my family made a special trip out to her farm to get one or two in our trick-or-treat bags.

My aunt wasn’t the only one who could turn breakfast cereal into sweets, however. My mother made us the original Rice Krispie bars with marshmallow cream every now and then. In the 1980s, some of my high school friends declared Scotcheroos — the peanut butter, corn syrup, chocolate-frosted Rice Krispie bar — the official snack of the Iowa Hawkeyes men’s basketball team. Making (and eating) them became a gameday ritual along with cheering on the likes of Steve Carfino, Mark Gannon and Bobby Hansen.

That was hardly the end of it. The Little Rock (Iowa) Bi-Centennial Cookbook published a recipe for Delicious Cookies, a variation of the old Toll House cookie that added oatmeal and Rice Krispies to the mix.

These still are my favorite chocolate chip cookies to this day.

Thus, by the time I was an adult, I had ceased to view Rice Krispies as a breakfast cereal. Instead, I saw them only as the thing that made my favorite cookies crunchy. This is best symbolized in where I keep my Rice Krispies at home. Instead of storing them in a box next to the other breakfast cereals, I keep them in a Mason jar that sits in the pantry along with the dried beans, corn meal and flour.

Below you will see a few things I’ve started doing with Rice Krispies. While millions of Americans know only the original Rice Krispie/melted marshmallow combination, there are many other possibilities involving crushed Oreo cookies, peanut butter cups and even sesame seeds.

And because it’s October, I also have include Aunt Wilma’s original chocolate Rice Krispie bar recipe. After all, she was the one who initially showed me what a simple breakfast cereal and some imagination can do.

Michael Knock is a former Press-Citizen reporter who welcomes your input, so send your recipes and ideas to cookingclasspc@yahoo.com, or to the Iowa City Press-Citizen, P.O. Box 2480, Iowa City, IA 52244.